Once the Clippers stopped jogging and started sprinting Sunday against the bruised and battered New York Knicks, everything was right in their world.

Once the Clippers remembered who they are and what the Knicks have become, it turned into a routine victory.

It took a little longer to get there than anyone might have expected, but the Clippers eventually got the double-digit victory they coveted by slicing and dicing the nicked-up Knicks in a pivotal third quarter and then securing a 93-80 win.

"We got the result we wanted," Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. "A solid win for us. Obviously, they have players out. It's a different complexion game. They're doing different things right now.

"But we got the result we wanted and I'm pleased with that."

DeAndre Jordan provided a highlight-reel dunk in the first half, completing a fast break with a windmill slam. Blake Griffin added one of his own in the second, off a lob pass from Chris Paul that had everyone in a sellout crowd of 19,412 at Staples Center on their feet.

Paul scored 20 points, grabbed four rebounds and added eight assists. Caron Butler added 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting in his first game back in the starting lineup after sitting out Wednesday's loss to the Memphis Grizzlies because of a strained left elbow.

Griffin added 12 points and 12 rebounds and Chauncey Billups had 12 points and five assists. Jamal Crawford scored 12 points in a reserve role and held his own with New York's J.R. Smith in a battle of NBA Sixth Man of the Year candidates.

Smith scored 17 points on 4-of-20 shooting to lead the depleted Knicks.

Raymond Felton added 16 points and nine assists, Chris Copeland scored 13 points and Jason Kidd had 11 points in a reserve role for New York, which lost its fourth consecutive game.

The Knicks played without injured standouts Carmelo Anthony (right knee), Tyson Chandler (left knee), Amare Stoudemire (right knee) and Rasheed Wallace (left foot), so the Clippers seemed unsure what to make of their replacements at the start Sunday.

The Clippers had 10 turnovers during a tentative first half in which they played in fits and starts and never led by more than seven points. The Knicks led by as many as eight points and seemed content to walk the ball down the court.

"We talked about pace and watched a few video clips of us walking the ball up the court, and coach Del Negro wasn't pleased with that," Griffin said.

"We had to make the adjustment. I thought we did a good job of that coming out in the third quarter."

The Clippers outscored the Knicks 28-23 in the third quarter, committed only one turnover and built a lead that swelled to as many as 19 points.

Butler and Griffin scored eight points apiece in the quarter and Paul scored seven points and added four assists.

Despite a few lackluster moments in the fourth quarter, the Clippers (46-21) kept the Knicks (38-26) at arm's length and then turned their attention to recapturing the kind of free-flowing game that vaulted them among the Western Conference's elite teams.

There are only 15 regular-season games remaining, and the Clippers hope to cement a place as one of the West's top three seeded teams. They also want to play at a higher level than they have during a recent stretch of games in which they lost the snap, crackle and pop of their game.

"I expect us to," Del Negro said of playing better down the stretch. "It's a long process. It's a long season. We see where we are in the standings right now and we have to play good, solid basketball. If we do that, we'll get as high a seed as possible.

"But I'm more interesting in us playing at a high level, getting everybody back healthy and, hopefully, continuing to improve as we get down to the last 15 games or so."

Eric Bledsoe, the Clippers' energetic backup guard, couldn't play because of a sore left calf and sat out for the third consecutive game. He averaged nine points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists in a little more than 21 minutes per game before he was injured.